SCENESETTER FOR VISIT TO MALAYSIA BY AMBASSADOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KUALA LUMPUR 000958

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR S/GWI PLEASE PASS TO AMBASSADOR VERVEER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/24/2019
TAGS: KWMN PREL PGOV GTIP MY
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR VISIT TO MALAYSIA BY AMBASSADOR
FOR GLOBAL WOMEN'S ISSUES MELANNE VERVEER

Classified By: AMBASSADOR JAMES R. KEITH FOR REASONS 1.4 (B AND D).

Summary and Introduction
--------------


1. (C) Madam Ambassador, Embassy Kuala Lumpur warmly welcomes
your visit to Malaysia. U.S.-Malaysia relations are changing
across a wide range of bilateral and multilateral settings.
In his first seven months in office, Prime Minister Najib Tun
Razak has demonstrated a more pragmatic and action-oriented
approach than his predecessor. Najib has explicitly endorsed
strengthened ties with the United States. The challenge is
for Malaysia to translate his words into deeds in priority
areas for us ranging from non-proliferation and contributions
to the effort in Afghanistan, to combating trafficking in
persons. Najib realizes Malaysia needs economic reforms to
stay competitive so he is pushing for increased economic
liberalization. Prospects for political reform are much less
certain because the ruling National Front coalition depends
on controlling the levers of power and patronage, while
Islamic influence in society is increasing. The ruling party
and its political opposition are dominated by ethnic Malays
who view the world increasingly through the prism of Middle
East politics.


2. (C) In the wake of the President's Cairo speech, your
visit provides an excellent opportunity to engage the
Malaysian government and society on the increasingly salient
topic of women's issues and rights in this moderate Muslim
country. Your interview with Al-Jazeera will get out our
message on women's issues to both the domestic audience and a
regional one. Malaysian leaders recognize the importance of
improving the status of women in Malaysia, including
addressing glass ceilings and domestic violence. They have
stated publicly that Islam grants women full equality with
men, but in practice there are clear concerns. Women's
Affairs Minister Shahrizat will be keen to exchange views
with you on these issues, as will the women entrepreneurs and
NGOs with whom you meet while in Kuala Lumpur. On the issue
of trafficking in persons (TIP) and Malaysia's designation as
a Tier III country, we have emphasized our desire to partner
with Malaysia in combating TIP, while seeking from them
concrete actions in the areas of labor-trafficking
prosecutions, implementation of a public awareness campaign
and improved victim identification and protection. END
SUMMARY AND INTRODUCTION.

The Broader Relationship in Context
--------------


3. (C) Robust trade and investment ties remain the solid
foundation of our relationship with Malaysia, our 18th
largest trading partner (bilateral trade totaled USD 44
billion in 2008). The GOM has been an important partner on
counterterrorism when it serves Malaysia's own security
interests, and we enjoy expanding law enforcement cooperation
as well as evolving military-to-military ties. Our
people-to-people ties build on decades of Malaysian students
studying in America (5,400 Malaysian students studied in the
U.S. during in 2007-2008). The emergence of new
administrations in both our countries has provided expanded
opportunities to pursue vigorous public outreach to
often-skeptical, but now more receptive, Muslim Malay
audiences.

The Status of Women
--------------


4. (SBU) Women's Minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil has called
for placing more women in decision-making positions.
Minister Shahrizat was responsible for successfully pushing
for a constitutional amendment barring gender discrimination
in August 2001. She has identified four major adversities
facing women in Malaysia today: the repercussions of the
recession; work-life balance; the gender gap; and violence
against women. Shahrizat's Deputy, Chew Mei Fun, told the
media on November 26 that women still faced discrimination in
Malaysia and cited increasing domestic violence (3,769
reported incidents in 2008) and rape cases. The Women's
Ministry is currently putting together an Action Plan "to
fast track women into decision-making positions in both the
public and private sectors." The GOM has agreed that women
should hold 30 percent of senior positions in the public
sector and wants the private sector to emulate this policy.


5. (SBU) Women in Malaysia have made significant progress
toward gender equality, not facing the kind of wholesale
economic and social discrimination against women found in
some predominantly Muslim countries. The GOM has ratified
the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of

KUALA LUMP 00000958 002 OF 003


Discrimination Against Women and Malaysia's five-year
development plans have included sections on the advancement
of women. There are 23 women Members of Parliament, about 10
percent of the total (222),and 17 out of 68 Senators are
women, while only two of 32 Cabinet Members are women.
Women, especially in the poorest states of Kelantan and
Terengganu, face disproportionately high rates of poverty and
lack access to health care. Women were said to be
disproportionately affected by the recent economic downturn.
NGOs claim that women face de facto job and salary
discrimination in Malaysia. NGOs such as Sisters in Islam
have also called attention to the case of a Muslim woman,
Kartika, who has been sentenced to be caned under Syariah law
for consuming alcohol, pointing out that such Islamic laws
are enforced selectively. NGOs are also concerned about
unfair treatment of women under syariah law, which covers
divorce, inheritance, child custody and other family-related
issues. Societal onus is also placed on women to avoid
dressing in ways that can provoke sexual harassment and
abuse.

Trafficking in Persons and Human Rights
--------------


6. (SBU) On June 16, the U.S. designated Malaysia as a Tier
III TIP country, for lack of significant efforts to combat
human trafficking. Areas identified in our annual TIP report
where problems were especially acute, included: labor
trafficking, prosecutions of traffickers, and victim
identification and protection. In the months following its
designation and our comprehensive engagement, the Malaysian
Government has taken a number of measures. The GOM has
arrested immigration officials in connection with the
trafficking of Burmese refugees at the Thai border (the
subject of an US Senate Foreign Relations Committee report);
shared with us a five-year National TIP Action Plan; issued
prosecutorial directives on the handling of TIP cases under
the guidance of the Attorney General's Chambers; and hosted a
number of trainings designed to educate law enforcement
officers on how to investigate and charge cases under the new
Anti-TIP Act. The GOM is also negotiating a new MOU with
Indonesia that would drop any provisions for employers to
hold migrant workers' passports. TIP Ambassador CdeBaca
visited Kuala Lumpur August 25-27 and met with several senior
government officials, including Foreign Minister Anifah Aman.



7. (SBU) On November 10, we presented the GOM, including the
Women's Minister, Foreign Minister, Home Affairs Minister and
Human Resources Minister, an outline of U.S. recommendations
on specific TIP issues the Malaysian government should focus
its efforts on in advance of our 2010 TIP review, which
begins early next year. We have also proactively engaged
with the GOM in providing a range of technical assistance and
training to help build their capacity to combat trafficking.
Over the last several months, the Mission has participated in
two training sessions for Malaysian law enforcement officials
and prosecutors, hosted a two-day seminar for journalists
reporting on TIP issues, and will coordinate two weeks of
U.S. Department of Justice training for 80 law enforcement
professionals in December.

Foreign Policy and Foreign Relations
--------------


8. (C) Malaysia's foreign policy is not well aligned with
that of the United States. Instead, it is Non-Aligned
Movement (NAM)-centric which leads Malaysia to vote opposite
the U.S. position on almost all important UN issues, and is
unlikely to change dramatically. Although the GOM has
recently expressed willingness to cooperate with
international efforts to prevent Iran from developing nuclear
weapons, Malaysia undercut its credibility in this area on
November 25 when it was one of only three IAEA Board of
Governors members (along with Cuba and Venezuela) to vote
against a German-sponsored IAEA resolution calling for
increased cooperation from Iran. U.S. support for Malaysia
joining the Somalia anti-piracy Contact Group was a useful
start to moving Malaysia toward more engagement in
multilateral security structures. We are encouraging
Malaysia to play a more active role in helping build capacity
in Afghanistan. Malaysia is a leading member of ASEAN, and
could play a more positive role in Southeast Asian conflict
resolution and ASEAN's approach to Burma to bring about
democratic change in that country. The one foreign policy
issue that resonates most profoundly with the Malaysian
public is the Israel-Palestine conflict, where predominantly
Muslim Malaysians (55 percent of the population) identify
with the Palestinians and attack U.S. support of Israel.


KUALA LUMP 00000958 003 OF 003


Domestic Politics
--------------


9. (C) The broader domestic context is more settled than a
year ago, but worrisome factors are still embedded in the
system. Najib came to power as Prime Minister in April 2009
in the midst of domestic political discord that raises
long-term questions regarding the continued dominance of his
ruling UMNO party, in power since independence in 1957. He
replaced former PM Abdullah Badawi, who was eased out after
the ruling National Front (BN) coalition lost its
near-perpetual two-thirds majority control of Parliament--and
five of 13 states--in the March 2008 general elections.
Najib successfully presided over the recent UMNO national
convention, which bolstered his leadership, but is finding it
challenging to identify and implement popular political
reform measures while maintaining UMNO's tight control over
state levers of power and patronage. With a weakened ruling
coalition, a consolidating opposition, and a more
sophisticated electorate with access to more information,
Malaysians are struggling to adjust to a new and more
competitive political environment.


10. (SBU) Malaysia's judiciary is not independent and the
ruling party has far too much power to circumscribe freedoms
of assembly, expression, and the press. In particular, the
ruling party has embarked upon an effort to modernize the
Internal Security Act, which permits extended detention
without judicial review. Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim
remains at risk of imprisonment over what most observers
would agree are politicized charges of sodomy, a violation of
criminal law in Malaysia. In recent months, the ruling party
has backed off its aggressive pursuit of the opposition
leader, but circumstances could change.

The Economy and Trade Relations with the U.S.
--------------


11. (SBU) Malaysia,s economy is expected to contract around
five percent in 2009 and recover slowly in 2010. The global
recession led to dramatic declines in exports and investment
this year in Malaysia, resulting in a recession since the
first quarter of 2009. Malaysian policy makers responded
with monetary easing and two fiscal stimulus packages worth a
total of USD 19 billion, but the Central Bank does not expect
a rebound until the fourth quarter of 2009 because Malaysia
remains dependent on the resumption of growth in its key
export markets, including the U.S., the EU, and Japan.
Hence, the political stakes are high for Najib, who must
ensure that the economy continues to provide growth and
prosperity to a large middle class. Najib has used the
recession to push forward economic reforms needed to keep
Malaysia competitive. Najib's recognition that reforms are
needed also presents opportunities for our trade and
investment agenda specifically with regard to market access
issues related to government procurement and competition
policy, among others. While it is not yet ready to join,
Malaysia is interested in discussions related to the
Trans-Pacific Partnership regional trade agreement. If it
decided to join, it could make use of much of the work done
during the U.S.-Malaysia Free Trade Agreement negotiations.
KEITH